THE GAME
On low-lying ground the children started a game
With the vaguest of rules but a very clear aim.
The object was simply to find the way home,
So with a bagful of clues they set off to roam.
The land grew dry. Cactus dotted the land,
Standing like scarecrows guarding the sand.
Then came a jungle with slithering snakes,
Vines and parrots and crystal-clear lakes.
They paused in a rolling countryside
Hoping some clues would help them decide
Which path ahead would be the right way
And if they would possibly reach home today.
Maria was told to turn left at the crest;
But Becca’s instructions said right would be best.
Annie was told to proceed with no other,
But Edward was told, “Stay with sisters and brother.”
To Leon the hint was to study, be smart;
But Remy was commanded to follow her heart.
Perplexing indeed, this disorderly direction —
No two clues had a clear-cut connection!
As the land grew steeper
Their confusion grew deeper.
The excitement of setting out
Had dissolved into doubt.
The cryptic clues and various views
Made a strategy indeed quite difficult to choose.
Even worse was the question troubling each heart:
If home is the end, then where did we start?
Maria and Becca stood frozen for fear of an error,
While stillness filled Annie and Edward with terror.
Leon suggested perhaps they turn back,
But Remy insisted they continue the attack.
Maria, the oldest, suggested a meeting,
Six stones in a circle served as their seating.
After much discussion they made their decision
To press on for home despite lacking precision.
Miles and miles they now traversed,
Enduring hunger and hardship and frequently, thirst.
But all their pain disappeared when they saw
Mountains and oceans that filled them with awe.
The game thus continued, but no one could say
If they were getting nowhere, or nearer, or farther away.
Leon said in frustration, “We have the wrong tools!”
Remy agreed, “Who drafted these rules?”
Urgently needing advice authoritative,
Annie suggested a knowledgeable native.
“The task before us is truly enormous.
“Let us seek out a sage to correctly inform us.”
In time they reached a new desert so dry
No tears would appear if they happened to cry.
Then out of nowhere a raven descended,
Saying, “Smile, my friends, your troubles have ended!”
The bird stood stately on the top of a cactus,
And remarked how well they played with no practice.
“You are all incredibly clever and bold,
“Had I medals to give, yours would be gold.
“You’ve already borne hardships unbearable —
“Would giving in now be really so terrible?
“You have before you a long way to go,
“And clearly your provisions are running low.
“Your progress ahead is sure to be slow,
“As you’re heading toward mountains laden with snow.
“I am the sage to show you the way,
“All that remains is to settle my pay.”
Remy explained, “We have no assets financial.”
“But still,” he replied, “You have something substantial.”
They peered deeply into the raven’s eye
And grew suspicious, not knowing quite why.
Maria said, “I don’t completely grasp his meaning,
“But proceeding without him is the way I am leaning.”
The raven remarked, “To force you, of course, is beyond my power,
“Still — your game I can end in less than an hour!”
But Annie spoke for them all as she said,
“That sounds like cheating. We’ll play without you instead.”
The raven then vanished as fast as he came,
Taking his promise and leaving no name.
Exhausted and anxious and homesick and scared,
They resolved to continue their adventure shared.
“Somewhere,” said Edward, “Our sage must be.
“Staying ever alert is for us now the key.”
So they scoured the rolling countryside
Looking this way and that, up, down, and wide.
Miles from there Becca blurted out news:
“Brothers and sisters, we are down to two clues!”
The first one said, “What seems small is big,
“Look not at the tree but instead at the twig.”
With no trees around for the group to explore,
They concluded the clue was what Edward called a metaphor.
Many moons later on a summit of snow,
Where the cold was bitter and the sun a red glow,
With a shivering hand Leon plucked the last clue.
To their delight it declared, “The path forward is true.”
Edward observed this clue had no worth.
“Behold, we are at the top of the earth!
“Any next step in our peregrination,
“Will of course bring us nearer our destination.”
Maria then said, “See this ice all around!
“Why should we not simply slide our way down?”
So they slid, speeding downward in frenzied flight,
When suddenly something terrible came into sight.
Ahead lay a ravine, wide, dark, and deep,
And no way to stop, the ground being so steep.
“Save us, Lord!” each of them cried,
And they flew through the air to the other side.
In an armful of days they found flat ground again,
And met a grey cat reading books in a glen.
“Greetings to all, my name is Athena.
“A legend am I in the cerebral arena.”
Thinking she the sage they sought,
The children wondered what wisdom she taught.
“Which way is home?” they asked with insistence.
“We have run out of clues as well as persistence.”
“I was a student of kindly Socrates,
“Who enlightened and let me take naps on his knees.
“From Seneca I learned why not to have fun,
“His reasoning and catnip were second to none.
“From Mr. Smith I discovered the virtues of greed,
“Then Herr Marx revealed the opposite creed.
“Zeno and Chesterton taught me paradox,
“And, Machiavelli, to turn a prince to a fox.”
“You look familiar,” Remy said between blinks.
“Ah — no doubt because I posed for the Sphinx!
“From the seriously serious to the purely comedic,
“My knowledge has become quite encyclopedic.”
“With all of those teachers and all of that musing,
“Isn’t it,” asked Leon, “A tad bit confusing?”
“No,” said Athena by way of reply.
“And now I shall tell you the reason why.
“All of my teachers had in common one thing,
“They never, ever, ever let me run out of string.”
“So I’d like to help you, truly I would.
“I’d do it this instant, if only I could.
“I’ve mapped the globe’s every twist, turn, and bend,
“But all of my routes turn out a dead end.
“The path to that valley is the route you should try,
“From there you’ll need a guide wiser than I.
“I do hope you find all that you’re seeking,
“Do let me know if you hear a mouse squeaking.”
Reaching at last the cat’s grand and green valley,
Their flagging spirits began to rally.
Alongside a river running rapid and deep,
They played into the night and then drifted to sleep.
Becca was the first in the morning to rise,
To find upon her a curious surprise!
A ladybug making a perch of her arm
Said, “Don’t worry, my child, I mean you no harm.”
While the others admired this incredible creature,
Leon asked, “Please, can you find us our teacher?”
The ladybug smiled. “I am Teresa, the teacher you seek.
“Your home lies there, just past that peak.”
In an instant the players believed and set out,
Home’s elusive location no longer in doubt.
The climb before them was rocky and steep,
Their ascent continued for a month and a week.
Nearing the top a black cloud came into view,
Rushing toward them, and with a roaring sound, too.
“It’s blackbirds!” screamed Rea, “Heading right for our faces!
“They’ll sweep us away and leave our parents no traces!
“Teresa, Teresa — What can we do?”
“I’ll tell them,” she said, “To get away from you.”
They lifted Teresa on the end of a stick,
As the ravens rushed forward, fast and thick.
“In the name of God and all that He loves,
“Become right now a flock of doves.”
And all at once the black cloud turned white.
The doves dispersed, disappearing from sight.
They continued to climb, no one wanting to stop.
When finally Annie shouted, “There is the top!”
The summit was heavy with clouds all around,
Revealing no discernible pathway down.
A wrong move now and the game would be lost,
A failure coming at most considerable cost.
Maria asked, “Where?”
Remy asked, “How?”
Teresa pointed,
“Go this way now.”
Down and down through the mist they descended,
True to the path their guide had intended.
The going was tough but they knew their trail
Would not and could not possibly fail.
Reaching the lower and familiar ground
Not a speck of mist remained to be found.
With home now in sight, Teresa departed.
They had arrived at last — Right where they’d started.
And into their mother’s arms they fell,
Peaceful and happy and altogether quite well.
Father cried from the porch, “My children, it’s late,
“Wash up, you’ll find dinner still warm on your plate.”
To the door they marched, past the circle of stones,
Past the scarecrow and cat, and felt a warmth in their bones.
The game was over, the game was won,
As behind the peak set the game day’s sun.
(Artwork by the players.)
